Thursday, February 11, 2010

So, my wife and I thought seriously about me going back to school to get a degree so that I can teach - officially - since I have been teaching for years. There are some programs I looked up on the Internet, and there might be a pell grant I can apply for.

Makes sense. I like to teach. I like it a lot, and I am good at it. When I have taught in the past it was performance and Musical Theatre stylings for the private student: A voice coach as it were. But I am stellar in history and English and as long as a have a spell check handy I can do well.

Today Jordan School District announces that they are laying off 500 teachers for the next year.

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Employers unexpectedly cut 20,000 jobs in January, and the unemployment rate fell to a five-month low of 9.7 percent, suggesting some labor market improvement starting to take root.

And where would that be?

KEY POINTS: * The Labor Department said the economy lost 150,000 jobs in December, compared to 85,000 previously reported, but November was revised to a gain of 64,000, up from 4,000. Christmas help, anyone? A sharp increase in the number of people giving up looking for work helped to depress the jobless rate. The number of 'discouraged job seekers' rose to 1.1 million in January from 734,000 a year ago.

COMMENTS:DOUG ROBERTS, "It indicates a certain form of stabilization but there's not a bounce that everybody was looking for."What is throwing people off is probably the 9.7 percent unemployment rate -- the drop in the unemployment rate --, which is positive but is not coming from new jobs created its coming from people dropping out of the work force.

"It's a series of conflicting data ... The positive take is basically it wasn't a total disaster, but the flip side of it is you're not seeing a recovery."

Really?

CARY LEAHEY, ECONOMIST, "The excitement is the unexpected drop in the unemployment rate. Both hiring and the number of people looking for work rose. That increases the sense that the unemployment rate peaked a couple of months ago. You won't see much improvement in the unemployment rate for the rest of the year because more people will start looking for jobs, but it appears the unemployment rate is on, at worst, a flat path.

And she says later that..."Payrolls lost 20,000 jobs, pretty much as expected. Revisions to the prior two months offset each other. November job growth was much better but December was much worse.

After the 25th.

"On the services side, a decrease of 48,000 jobs was led by retail trade which might be a problem of seasonal adjustments after Christmas.

"Another large gain in temporary help was positive because that eventually will lead to more gains in permanent hiring.

Tell that to the fired Temp help.

"The drop in the unemployment rate does have implications for the Fed. If the Fed sees the unemployment rate stabilizing, it's obviously closer to lifting short-term interest rates than it would be otherwise. Everyone knows the Fed will be extraordinarily unwilling to hike rates until the unemployment rate starts to move lower.

TOM SOWANICK, "The drop in the unemployment rate should be viewed in the context not that it is not a shocker but that this is the second monthly decline. The trend may now be established and that's probably why the bond market was not reacting at first and now under pressure. Was January stronger than anticipated? The answer is yes because December was much weaker.

KURT KARL, "It is an interesting set of numbers. Disappointment with the downturn in non-farm payrolls, but interesting that the unemployment rate ticked down quite substantially. It could mean some good news is coming soon. That is why the unemployment rate went down -- you had a very small increase in the labor force and a huge jump in household employment."

"We're probably still at least six to 12 months away before we start to see a strong hiring trend. At the same time today's numbers weren't far enough away from expectations to be a major (Treasury) market mover."

Friday, February 5, 2010

Fix That Resume! A sandwitch board can get attention. So can a stellar resume - even if your experence isnt outstanding.

Before you start work on your resume, review free resume samples that fit a variety of employment situations. These sample resumes and templates provide job seekers with examples of resume formats that will work for almost every job seeker.

Don't just copy a resume example that you like. Instead, choose your resume very carefully. Review resume examples, choose a type of resume that highlights your strengths and achievements, and review a typical resume format. Remember, your resume needs to impress the hiring manager enough so you get the interview. That means it needs to be perfect. I found a slew of workable templates that served very well by googling Resume.

Make sure you work it over with a spell check or seven, and a smart neighbor who owes you a favor. Don't look like a foolish man/woman, which is how you will look if your resume is not put together well. And remember to tell the truth!

It may be good to have several different styles of resume for more professional, or for more casuel workplaces and attitudes. And with the formats that are available, it is easy to do at your desk or at the local library.

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Its February! It's February! Don't you know what that means?

It means that another arbitrary day has come that we can use as a proverbial measuring stick to see how our efforts thus far have paid off and how that haven't. No hangovers physically or emotionally - just a day to see where we are, and where we want to be. There will be time later to get drunk. Naaaaaw.

We're here to access potential today. What are my strengths count them out. List them in such a matter that they make even you proud.

That's right you can do it while sitting down. Now, areas of weakness, or areas of opportunities. That's right.

Now what are you planning to do to strengthen these areas for growth. Write them down. Post them up. Come out with a plan. Doesn't have to be storming the castle today, but when? What will you wear, what is the thought you want them to get from you straightaway. Practice it out a bit. Get prepared. Use this "no stress" time to get prepared and to find out that you do actually really do like yourself.

Follow through with a plan. Push yourself a bit harder. Eat something yummy.

Monday, February 1, 2010

Okay, here's a job I wasn't expecting to have. I'm the chauffeur for the family.

When Kid One needs to go to basketball practice, I'm the man. When Kid Two just has to get to the library, its "Lets go dad. you're not doing anything'. I need the car during the day for job hunting, so I get to take mom to work and pick her up. School starts at 8am and gets out at 1pm and if the bills are late, then I get to hand deliver them...and "Hey while you are out of work, why don't you remodel that backroom so we can study uninterrupted."

Cool! I can paint the hallway and re-sod the lawn and thin the perennials and babysit the maimed chicken and...and...

But I need to find a job.

"What? You have all day! Are you on the Internet again! Its 9pm! Maybe you should be using this time to deliver your resumes while the kids are watching a DVD. You really should utilize your time better."

If someone tells me how to run my life one more time I am going to throw keys at someone, and my aim is pretty darn...

But first, it seems, I have to take my daughter to the church for young women's.